CD/DVD Collector's Edition

I liked the book better than the movie but the movie still turned out pretty good (even though they left a lot of stuff out). I remember everyone in the theatre jumping out of their seats when that head rolled out of the bottom of the boat. Jaws is definitely a classic but better than anything Hitchcock ever did? Can't say I agree with that. One of the local stations (WCTI TV 12 out of New Bern, to be exact) used to have a show that aired on Saturday nights called Will C.'s Redeye Cinema that was usually nothing but horror movies. As you might imagine, most of them were B grade horror movies but some actually were scary (when they weren't being unintentionally funny). I saw both of these at the theatre but they were the kind of movies that were right at home on Will C.'s Redeye Cinema.

Never been much of a G n' R fan, just my way of saying I prefer to hear Tommy's solo work and/or a possible revival of the Replacements with Paul Westerberg.

Mt. Moriah's debut full length still doesn't have a release date as they're still shopping for a label but this is a taste from it. Mt. Moriah "Old Gowns"

The Continuing Saga of Moby Grape Michael Ochs Archives/Getty It is the great lingering miracle of 1967: Moby Grape — the San Francisco quintet blessed with the voices, songs and guitars to become America's Beatles and Rolling Stones combined, that all but crashed on arrival — are stubbornly present, vibrant and adding to their discography. Live (Sundazed), the group's first official collection of prime-time concert recordings, from 1966 to 1969, was issued last spring. (Full disclosure: I wrote the liner notes). And there is a fine, new studio album featuring the surviving original members — Peter Lewis, Jerry Miller, Bob Mosley and Don Stevenson — with Omar Spence, son of the late Skip Spence, carrying his father's spirit and glow forward on vocals and guitar. Alas, the record is hung up by internal issues, although a version of that Grape — with Omar, Miller and Stevenson, dubbed New Wine — played a rousing set at SXSW in Austin, Texas last spring. A Rare Vintage Desert Rain (Shagrat) is a welcome release, on ten-inch vinyl, of three 1973 demos by the Darrow-Mosley Band, a short-lived group Mosley formed between Grape reunions with singer-guitarist Chris Darrow of the L.A. ethno-psychedelic band Kaleidoscope. The tracks, made to seal a potential deal at Warner Bros., are the kind of modest joys that keep on giving — country-soul in the style of the Grape's great third album, '69. There is a reprise from that record — Mosley's "It's a Beautiful Day Today," in a spare parlor-demo style with a closing choral glaze — and an electric-R&B cover of the Temptations' "I Wish It Would Rain," sung by Mosley. "Albuquerque Rainbow" is a song from one of Darrow's earlier solo records, a sunny-Stones number with a railroad beat and twang that would have made a fitting opener to an album if Warner Bros. hadn't passed on the band. Desert Rain comes in a limited edition of 500 copies with a wonderful cover — a California landscape in Fillmore-dance-poster hues — with an ornate label, like a 1930s 78, and liner notes by Darrow about how this sweet interlude came to a bittersweet end. (shagratrecordsuk@btinternet.com) The Drummer Steps Out When drummer Don Stevenson joined Moby Grape in the late summer of '66, he came as half of a writing team with guitarist Jerry Miller. Among their contributions: "Hey Grandma," "8:05" and the funky Grape complaint on 1968's Wow, "Murder in My Heart for the Judge," inspired by Stevenson's run-in with a traffic-court magistrate. It only took 44 years, but Stevenson has finally made his debut album as a singer-songwriter, King of the Fools (Open Path). The music is an engaging blend of country, blues and R&B, like Jerry Garcia's solo records but with a rougher-timber feel in the singing and playing plus Miller contributing guitars and harmonies. That has to be Miller's biting tone and jazzy inflections in the long closing break of "Laa Laa (I Want to Be With You)." "Getting Used to Being Treated Wrong" is a sly package of done-dirty vocals and guitar temper, and "I'll Be There For You" is a country-saloon song that could have slid right on to the Grape's '69 — more proof that Moby Grape were and still are the unique sum of remarkable parts. (openpathmusic.com)

Cool. If Duff rejoins G n' R then that means Tommy Stinson can get back to making some music that's actually worthwhile again. On a somewhat related note, I recently read that Velvet Revolver are back together and are searching for a new singer (again).

From ConsequenceOfSound.net: R.E.M.’s new album will be called Collapse Into Now BY ALEX YOUNG Here’s a great little nugget that just popped up on our Twitter feed. The BBC reports that R.E.M. have titled their much-anticipated 15th studio album Collapse Into Now and will unveil it to the masses next Spring. As previously reported, the band recorded the followup to 2008’s Accelerate with legendary producer Garret “Jacknife” Lee (U2, Bloc Party, Editors) during sessions in Portland, New Orleans, and Berlin. More details as they become available/pop up on Twitter.

I may have to finally pop my Xmas Jam cherry. WARREN HAYNES PRESENTS: THE 22ND ANNUAL CHRISTMAS JAM DECEMBER 11TH, 2010 THE ASHEVILLE CIVIC CENTER | ASHEVILLE, NC THE INITIAL LINE-UP: THE STEVE MILLER BAND The Debut of THE WARREN HAYNES BAND GREGG ALLMAN JOHN BELL of Widespread Panic JOHN "JOJO" HERMANN of Widespread Panic DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS UMPHREY'S MCGEE THE DIRTY DOZEN BRASS BAND

A friend of mine once related a story of Lemmy jumping into a crowd swinging his mic at concertgoers. My friend then said, "now, just how rock n' roll is that?" I couldn't agree with it being cool at all. Sounds more like someone being an asshole. Then again, I'm not sure if the crowd did something to provoke him. Still, I don't think it's "rock n' roll" or cool at all.

Promo for the band Velvet Crush featuring a very young Mitch Easter (Let's Active, R.E.M., etc.):

Probably more notable for Mr. Lindley's picking than the humor in the song but give her a spin anywho...

This song is always striking but is best listened to while out at sea with the ocean stretched out in front of you. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw7qzpSwucc

Really? I figured the ranking this one received would drop into the negatives. I've never been anti-Yoko but some friends of mine did use this song to empty a pizza parlour in Greenville, NC way back when Kiss Kiss Kiss first came out.

^6.7 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ec_VKM3V5tE&feature=player_embedded

OLLABELLE, JIM LAUDERDALE, CATHERINE RUSSELL, AIOFE O'DONOVAN • 'AMERICAN BEAUTY PROJECT: MUSIC FROM THE GRATEFUL DEAD' Ollabelle with Jim Lauderdale, Catherine Russell, Aoife O'Donovan & David Mansfield Friday, October 15, 2010 | 8:00 pm Page Auditorium Clear the haze surrounding the Grateful Dead’s Workingman’s Dead and American Beauty and you get a luminous Americana closer to Appalachia than Haight-Ashbury. Here, new-style folk band Ollabelle—co-founded by Amy Helm (daughter of The Band’s Levon)—supports a ramble of stars as they recover the heart of those American beauties. Sharing lead vocals are country-bluegrass icon Lauderdale; Dylan collaborator Mansfield; the singer-composer for Crooked Still, O’Donovan; and the "incredibly talented" Russell (Village Voice)—a freewheeling collective that evokes The Band, but raises a new, unvarnished Dead.

From WorleyGig.com: Original Members of the Alice Cooper Band Record New Material for Cooper Solo Album Alice Cooper in 1972: Neal, Alice, Michael, Dennis and Glen Hello, Hurray! Fans of the original 1970s band Alice Cooper are about to have one of their long-hoped-for dreams come true. The band’s four surviving members, guitarist Michael Bruce, bassist Dennis Dunaway, drummer Neal Smith and vocalist Alice Cooper (lead guitarist Glen Buxton passed away in 1997) spent two days in September at a NYC studio recording three original tracks for Cooper’s next solo album. Rumored to be a follow-up to Cooper’s first solo effort, 1975’s Welcome To My Nightmare, the album is due to be released in the fall of 2011. These sessions were the first to feature all members of the original Alice Cooper band since the group recorded its 1974 swan song, Muscle of Love. At the board for these sessions was studio legend Bob Ezrin, who not only produced the band’s commercial breakthrough, 1971’s Love it To Death (featuring the hit single “I’m Eighteen”), but who was also responsible for producing several of their other classic hits, including School’s Out and their most popular and commercially successful album, 1973’s Billion Dollar Babies. Ezrin has also produced many solo albums for Alice Cooper the individual since the band’s breakup. Ezrin, whose exhaustive body of work includes landmark albums such as Pink Floyd’s The Wall, has been quoted as saying that the work he did with the Alice Cooper Band in the seventies gave him his career. It is also rumored that rock photographer Bob Gruen, who took many photos of the original band back in the day – including promotional shots for Muscle of Love featuring the band dressed in identical sailor suits – made an appearance to visually document the band hanging out in the studio. Those Alice Cooper band devotees still hoping for a reunion that would see the band perform live can hold out hope that Smith, Dunaway and Bruce make good on rumors that they will join Cooper this coming December in Phoenix, AZ for his annual Christmas Pudding charity concert event.

From Anti-Music.com: Big Star Orchestra with R.E.M, Lost in the Trees and More Members of R.E.M, Big Star, The Love Language, Lost in the Trees and the NC Symphony will present a fully orchestrated performance of Big Star's third album, Sister Lovers, at Cat's Cradle In Carrboro, NC on December 9 & 10. Here is the announcement with the details: Big Star's Sister Lovers has long been revered by artists and critics as one of the most influential albums ever produced. Written and recorded when the legendary 70s band was primarily a studio project consisting of Alex Chilton and Jody Stephens, the third album has never been performed in public with the original string and wind orchestrations. That will change December 9 and 10, 2010 when Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, NC hosts Stroke It, Noel, a special performance of this important piece of music. The all-star band will include Jody Stephens (Big Star), Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Mitch Easter (Let's Active), Chris Stamey (the dB's), and Jeff Crawford and Charles Cleaver (the Tomahawks). North Carolina's own acclaimed chamber pop group Lost in the Trees, as well as members of Birds and Arrows and the NC Symphony, will comprise the orchestra. Guest vocalists will include members of the Love Language, the Old Ceremony, Megafaun and other special guests. In addition to performing Sister Lovers in its entirety, the band will play a few additional Big Star and Chris Bell selections during the show. "The original written scores for the record were long missing," Chris Stamey says. "But John Fry at Ardent Records was able to supply us with elements of the original multitrack tapes. Composer Carl Marsh, who wrote the ground-breaking charts for the original record, used these tapes to precisely retranscribe his arrangements. And I've orchestrated anew some other elements of the recordings for the players, in order to recreate live some of the aleatoric studio effects. We've also been able to hear and match the inner workings of these glorious compositions in much greater detail this way. It's been a fascinating process, and a real community adventure as well."

This is the single from the new Two Cow Garage album, Sweet Saint Me which is due out on October 27th.

From NoDepression.com: Robert Plant and my part in his renaissance Posted by Tim on October 4, 2010 at 9:08pm CD Review Robert Plant and the Band of Joy Band of Joy (Rounder) I like the musical trajectory Robert Plant has taken since the heady daze of Led Zeppelin, not least because my own tastes have described a similar arc. Not that I'm comparing myself to the rock icon, you understand; just that I find it interesting that Plant's move into roots music mirrors precisely the path of a lot of ye olde time Zep fans I know. I'm talking about Generation Jonesers who had Zeppelin as a staple of their musical diet and who have, through their own investigations, found their way into the folkways of the roots and alt.country scene that Plant is now involved with. What's interesting to me is that the stories of these Gen Jonesers are often the same. They were fanatical about whatever music they were into in their teenage years, were immersed in it so that it was a central part of their life and their identity, a state of affairs illustrated by the image of them moving into their first post-parental accommodation (generally a group house, often in another city) and taking with them -- ahead of any other possessions -- a milk crate (or ten) filled with LPs. After that, moving into their twenties and thirties, getting jobs, maybe getting married, music was pushed more and more to the background. Other things, like air, became more central to their lives, though catching up with old friends, now flung to the four corners of the world, inevitably involved breaking out the old LPs, or maybe the repurchased CD versions of the old albums, and reminiscing endlessly about how great those bands were. In fact, the advent of CDs was probably the first thing in the world of music that really grabbed their attention since...well, name an arbitrary date in the 70s. Of course, it was more a geeky interest in the technology rather than a rediscovery of music, and sure enough, the CDs we bought pretty much mirrored the LP collections they already had. Good news for the likes of Robert Plant, no doubt. To read the remainder of the review, click here.

Cool. They've also been doing remastered versions of Murmur, Reckoning and Fables of the Reconstruction on vinyl so I was just curious as to if it was one of those. Hell, new vinyl these days cost more than CDs. I remember when it used to be the other way around.